The Shape of Lost Things by Sarah Everett

The Shape of Lost Things by Sarah Everett
Publisher:  Harper Collins
Format:  E-ARC 
Number of pages:   272 pages
Publishing:   October 22nd, 2024
Source:  Spark Point via NetGalley 

Opening Lines:  I think it's safe to say I hate September."  

Four years ago, Skye Nickson's father kidnapped her brother, Finn and they disappeared.  Every September, their mom throws a MIA birthday party for him, and she's reminded of how much they miss him and just how difficult his absence has been on their mom.  Finn has always been her favorite person.  Usually, Skye could rely on her best friends, Reece and Jax to cheer her up, but recently, Reece has been acting differently.  Mom's new boyfriend, Roger helps to fill in some of mom's loneliness and their cat, Catastrophe has been a nice addition too.  Roger even asked Skye for her permission to marry her mom.     

When news arrives that Finn has been found, everyone is elated, but this new Finn is nothing like he was before.  He's grown taller, is secretive and he doesn't appear to remember any of the special moments they spent together growing up.  He's forgotten the family game of "Did you Know" and all the inside jokes they used to share.  And what is it with his late-night phone calls and losing things?  Skye tries to recapture the Finn of four years ago, but time didn't stand still.  Finn has had his own series of events that has shaped him into who he is now and yet Skye can't understand why he isn't happy to be home with them.

Skye loves to take photographs with an old Polaroid camera, she feels that they capture the things we can't see in the moment.  And she hopes that by taking pictures of Finn she'll be able to understand him better, but all it does is make her even more suspicious that this Finn can't really be her brother.  He doesn't even have the same scar that he had as a kid.  She knows that Finn has been in contact with their father, and that he's been lying about it and because she can't trust this new Finn, she even tries to get the police to investigate.   When Finn fails to come home one night, everyone begins to suspect foul play.  Recalling Finn's phone, Skye manages to contact their dad, and she begins to piece together some of what Finn was going through while he was with their dad.  Skye is instrumental in finding Finn and the whole family begins to receive therapy. 

Change is a huge theme throughout The Shape of Lost Things.  I especially liked the emphasis that "change doesn't have to be a bad thing.  It can just be a fact.  Like day and night, or the fact that some people are cat people, and some people are not."  Friends may change, Skye's brother changed, everyone around them may be changing and sometimes even our memory about events can change, but some changes are natural, and we need to adapt with them.  Keeping dialog open.  

Overall, the story is a little sad but does manage to resolve on a happier note.  Skye and her brother learn they had similar feelings of abandonment.  Skye feeling that she wasn't "special enough" for her dad to even take her with them.  While Finn struggled over his feelings about how no one found him and that it wasn't a choice for him to go.  Despite the tight bond they shared being disrupted by their dad's apparent mental health issues, and processing the kidnapping differently, it was nice to finally have them see both sides of the story and to have glimpses of the old Finn emerge.  This quick read may delve into some emotionally complex topics like a parent's mental illness and a sibling's abduction and return, but it also includes topics like a first crush, evolving friendships, and a parent's remarriage that kids can easily identify with.  I hope you'll have an opportunity to read it and would look forward to reading your thoughts.  Feel free to leave me a comment. 

** A huge thank you to the Spark Point for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review**  

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